Eastern Highlands Provincial Administrator Solomon Tato is now facing trial at the Goroka National Court after an application challenging his ex-officio indictment got dismissed last Friday, Sept 30.
Tato filed the application to dismiss or quash the ex-officio indictment or an election of his case by the Public Prosecutor to proceed to the National Court for trial.
The Public Prosecutor elected his case to go forward to the National Court under section 526 of the Criminal Code. This happened after the Goroka District Court dismissing his case for insufficient evidence on Nov 27 last year.
The indictment was served on Tato in Port Moresby on July 22 by the Public Prosecutor, Pondros Kaluwin, for misappropriation allegations. The allegations date back to 2011.
That application was heard in Goroka and a decision was made on Sept 30 at the Goroka National Court by Justice Joseph Yagi dismissing it.
The Goroka National Court found that the ex-officio indictment was properly done. He remains on a bail of K5,000 and is expected to return to court in Goroko for call over.
Four other co-accused are also facing trial at the Goroka National Court from the same allegations.
Tato said he will remain as the Provincial Administrator for Eastern Highlands Province and defend that case in the National Court.
He was reinstated by the Supreme Court on Feb 15 as the Provincial Administrator after the Goroka District Court dismissed allegations of misconduct against him.
However, on March 14, his case was elected by the Public Prosecutor to go for trial through an ex-officio indictment.
From Ibusa-Moke village, Okapa, Eastern Highlands Province, Tato was charged for abusing the authority of his office and the dishonest application (or the misappropriation) of K2m between March 5, 2011, and March 21, 2012.
The first charge against Tato alleges that he abused the authority of his office between March 5, 2011, and March 21, 2012, in Goroka, by not calling for a public tender and awarded a contract to Lance Works Limited. He allegedly did this while being employed as the acting provincial administrator of the Eastern Highlands Provincial Administration and chairman of the Eastern Highlands Provincial Supply and Tenders Board.
The second charge alleges that Tato, between that same period, dishonestly applied to the use of Lance Works Limited and others monies in the sum of K2 million – properties of the State.
(Solomon Tato in blue with his lawyer George Lao outside the Waigani National Court presinct.)